


Collision at Home

by kikikryslee



Series: Bottom of the Tenth [4]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Banter, Bickering, Established Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Established Relationship, Fluff, Humor, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-08
Updated: 2018-07-08
Packaged: 2019-06-07 11:53:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15218588
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kikikryslee/pseuds/kikikryslee
Summary: Harry dropped his suitcase by the door and walked over to the couch.“Don’t get comfortable!” Louis said.“Lou, I’m exhausted from the flight home,” Harry said. “Why can’t I get comfortable?”“Because we need to unpack our suitcases.”“Right now? Why?”“You know why.”Louis loved his fiancé, but Harry’s worst trait by far was his procrastination, and that absolutely applied to unpacking his bags after getting back from, well, anywhere.If Harry didn't unpack now, the bag would sit there forever. Or, until Louis unpacked it for him. And he wasn't doing that. Not again.---Or, the one where all Louis wants is for Harry to unpack his luggage, but Harry just keeps coming up with increasingly ridiculous ways to put it off.





	Collision at Home

**Author's Note:**

> Yay! First off, I'm really excited to be doing Wordplay this year. It really came down to the wire for this fic, because I really struggled with coming up with an interesting idea. But here we are! Good thing I had nothing to do this weekend, haha. 
> 
> This is part of a prompt challenge that a group of us are participating in for the prompt "Need". To read the amazing fics that were written by the others on this prompt, [click here](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/need/works), and to see all fics written as part of the challenge, [click here](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/wordplay_fic_challenge/works).
> 
> Thank you to [Angela](https://yellowpantsharry.tumblr.com/) and [Nic](http://louandhazaf.tumblr.com/) for being such quick betas! 
> 
> This fic is a part of a series, but I don't think you need to read the other parts in order to understand this one. Although you should. I think they're pretty good. 
> 
>  
> 
> **DO NOT post this story or any of my other stories on any other websites. I'm not comfortable with that, and I hope that you can please respect that. If you see any of my stories on another website, please let me know. I am also NOT currently authorizing translations of any of my stories at this time. I hope you can respect that, as well. Thank you!**
> 
>  
> 
> Anyway, I think that's it. Enjoy!

**June 2018**

 

Harry let out a loud sigh of relief as he and Louis walked into their apartment.

“Home,” Louis said. “Finally.”

The two of them were just returning from their trip to Bulgaria, a place they’d been wanting to visit for a long time - 12 years to be exact. It was back when Louis first realized he wanted to travel the world and visit pretty much anywhere that had anything interesting to offer. One day, when he was just a freshman in high school, he’d thrown a dart at a map on his wall, the dart landed on Bulgaria, and the country was added to the list of places Louis and his best friend Harry would visit one day. And now, 12 years later, he and Harry, his now fiancé, were returning from a trip there.

Dreams really do come true.

They had a few more days to relax before Louis’ shortened summer schedule began. He worked as an Events Coordinator at Farrington University, a local state school and also Louis’ alma mater. Harry was a second grade teacher, and since his school year was over, he would have a lot more time off than Louis. And honestly, he was looking forward to having the apartment to himself sometimes.

Harry dropped his suitcase by the door and walked over to the couch.

“Don’t get comfortable!” Louis said quickly, hoping to catch Harry before he sat down.

But no such luck. Harry sat anyway.

“Lou, I’m exhausted,” Harry said. “Why can’t I get comfortable?”

“Because we need to unpack our suitcases.”

“Right now? Why?”

“You know why.”

“No, I don’t think I do.”

Louis rolled his eyes. He loved his fiancé, he really and truly did. But Harry’s worst trait by far was his procrastination, and that absolutely applied to unpacking his bags after getting back from, well, anywhere.

“If you don’t unpack now, this bag will sit here for weeks, untouched.”

“Is that a threat or a promise?” Harry said with a smile.

“Harry!”

“What? Come on, Lou. That turbulence at the end of the flight really did one over on me. I just need a few minutes to relax.”

“As if you didn’t relax in the car on the way back from the airport. It was a forty-minute drive.”

“Well, now I need to relax on something stationary.”

“Fine. Sit there, then,” Louis said in annoyance. “But don’t think this will be like last time, when we got back from the weekend in the Poconos and your bag sat here for so long that I finally unpacked it for you.”

“It won’t.”

“And I seem to remember hearing a story from Anne about you coming home from a trip in college, and she got so annoyed at your bag still sitting in your room that  _ she  _ unpacked it.”

“OK!”

“Or when we got back from Audrey’s wedding and you literally pulled stuff out of your duffel bag when it was needed until there was nothing left.”

“Louis, I get it,” Harry told him.

“Or—”

“OK! Louis, I promise it won’t be like that! I will unpack my bag. I will!”

Louis nodded. “Good. Now, you said it. Can’t take it back.”

“I don’t think it counts if I was pestered into agreeing to it.”

Louis rolled his eyes before taking his own suitcase back to their bedroom. Harry fell asleep within minutes.

\---

The next afternoon, Harry and Louis returned from Target, each carrying multiple overflowing plastic bags.

“Why do we still go to Target expecting to stick to the list of things we actually need?” Harry asked, depositing his bags on their dining table. “We’re destined to suffer from a never ending cycle of going in for ‘just a few things,’ and leaving after spending more than we have to.”

“That’s just what Target does to you,” Louis said. He walked into the kitchen and started putting away their frozen groceries. “At least we’re not the only people who go through this, babe.”

“I guess that helps.”

Louis put the groceries and other household items in his bags away quickly. He was almost done with his stuff when Harry finally came into the kitchen carrying his shopping bags.

“Oh, there you are,” Louis commented. “Did you get lost on your way here?”

“Hahaha, you’re so funny.”

Harry slowly started taking the groceries out of the bags and putting them away. Louis helped with them so that it could just be done.

When they were all finished, they sat on the couch in the living room. Louis turned on the television and Harry pulled out his phone.

“Still haven’t unpacked your bag,” Louis said casually as he flicked through channels.

“Yeah…” Harry replied.

“You gonna get to it today?”

Harry just shrugged. “Probably. I know I need to, babe. I know.”

“OK. Because—”

“We should go to an  [ Eagles  ](https://www.philadelphiaeagles.com/) game,” Harry said suddenly.

Louis lowered the remote and turned his head slowly to stare at Harry. “Huh?”

“We should go to an Eagles game.” Harry held up his phone to show Louis what he had been looking at on his phone. It was open to the StubHub app, and the list of home games the Eagles would be playing that season was on display.

“Why?”

“Because they won the Super Bowl, so I feel like it would be a good time to go. You know, see what the hype is all about.”

“But we’re not Eagles fans,” Louis pointed out, even though Harry knew that.

“Yeah, but just to say we did it.”

“But they  _ just won  _ the Super Bowl. Ticket prices will be through the roof.”

“It’s for the experience, Lou!” Harry said.

“But we’re not _fans_ _of the team._ ”

“I see that as a win-win.”

“How?”

“If they win, awesome! If they lose, who cares?”

“Why are you acting weird today?” Louis wondered.

“I’m not! Promise.” Harry smiled as he kissed Louis quickly on the cheek. “I’m gonna start dinner.”

“OK.”

Louis watched Harry walk away, confused at the sudden conversation. And then he noticed Harry’s suitcase still sitting by the door, and realized that had all been a distraction technique.

Clever.

Well, Louis knew what to do next. He opened Netflix on the TV and pulled up the latest show they’d been binge-watching.

“Hey, Harry, there’s new episodes of  _ Nailed It!  _ ” Louis called out.

Harry quickly returned to the living room. “Yeah?”

“Yeah, we should watch them after dinner.”

“OK.”

“If you unpack your suitcase.”

Harry’s smile quickly dropped. “You’re rude.”

“Just trying to help.”

“Shut up.”

Harry went back to the kitchen, but as he walked, he said, “But if it means that much to you, fine. I’ll do it tonight.”

“Thank you! I really do need you to do it. Love you.”

“Whatever.”

\---

Harry didn’t unpack that night. Shocker.

 

**July 2018**

 

“Louis, have you ever heard of the Wikipedia game?” Harry asked when Louis came home from a morning run.

Louis pulled his earbuds out and draped them around his shoulders. “The what?”

“The  [ Wikipedia game  ](https://thewikigame.com/) . You sign in, and then you get these two Wikipedia pages that seem like they have nothing in common, and then you have to click through links on the pages to get from the first one to the second. I just won a round connecting some random Pope and electricity! I was the only one who could do it!”

“That’s, um… great, babe.”

“You want to try one? The next round is about to start. We have to connect Andre Agassi to the Eiffel Tower.”

“What? How?”

“I don’t know, but sit down.”

Louis sat next to Harry on the couch and looked at his laptop screen.

“Oh, I think I have an idea,” Harry said.

“Already?”

“Yeah. But what do you think?”

Louis shrugged. “I don’t know. Look how long his page is. Why is there so much here?”

“Because Andre Agassi was a really talented player? And he has a lot of accomplishments?”

“Yeah, but damn this is a lot to look through.”

“Oh, fuck!” Harry suddenly yelled.

“What?” Louis asked.

“My competition already finished.”

“Your competition? Who?”

“I don’t know, probably some teenager in like, Europe or something.”

“How did they finish, though?” Louis was confused. “I feel like my head’s spinning.”

“Hang on.”

Harry scrolled up the top of the page and skimmed the first few paragraphs. “Where is it?” he muttered to himself.

And then…

“A ha!” he yelled, making Louis jump. “So I’m going to click on this link here, for the French Open.”

He clicked on the article, and when it came up, he only had to look for a second before finding the link for Paris, and finally, on the right, a few pictures down, was a link for the Eiffel Tower.

Once Harry clicked it, a notification popped up on the screen saying ‘You Won!’

“Wow, that was pretty impressive, babe,” Louis said honestly.

“Thank you. Now I can try to find a different path to get more points before this round is up.”

“How long do you have?”

“You have 200 seconds for each round,” Harry answered. He glanced to the corner of the screen and said, “there’s 100 seconds left in this one. So I could find something.”

“And how long have you been playing this today? Just curious.”

“Uhh… A few rounds.”

“How many is a few?”

“Just a few.” Harry’s eyes were quickly moving across the screen, looking for the next link to click.

“Harry…”

“A few dozen, maybe? I don’t know. I kind of lost count.”

“And yet your suitcase is still not unpacked.”

“As you can see, I’ve been busy, Louis. Damn it! I clicked the wrong link. Now I have to backspace and that’s going to count for two of my clicks. The score shows on the screen; I’ll look like such an amateur.”

“You  _ are  _ an amateur,” Louis told him. “You just started playing like, today.”

“They don’t have to know that, though. OK, it’s done. Did I have the least clicks?”

“You’re inventive, I’ll give you that.” Louis stood up. “I’m gonna go shower. Unpack your bag.” 

“Yeah, yeah.”

Louis was tempted to close Harry’s laptop as he waited for the next round to start. He quite valued his life, though, so he figured that wouldn’t be the best idea.

\---

“Hey, babe,” Harry greeted as Louis returned home from work on Monday.

Louis stared at him in confusion.

“What’s wrong?” Harry asked.

“You’re wearing glasses,” Louis answered easily.

“I know. Do you like them?”

“Where did you get glasses?”

“Dollar store.”

“Why?” Louis asked.

“Well, they’re not actual prescription or anything, so it’s not for that,” Harry said. “But they do make me look smarter, don’t they? And good writers need to look smart.”

“What?”

“What? Why are you staring at me like that?”

“What do you mean you have to look smarter? And what are you writing?”

“Oh, remember how I told you I wanted to write a novel a few years ago?”

“You mean when you were in college?” Louis asked.

“Yeah! Well, it was more recent than that, Lou. But I had some inspiration to work on it, so I opened the document and started writing.”

“Tell me you got this ‘sudden inspiration’ because you didn’t feel like unpacking your bag.”

Harry gasped. “Of course not!”

Louis rolled his eyes. “Harry, you need to unpack your bag.”

“I know! And I will. Once I’m done writing.”

“Once you’re done writing? H, that’ll take forever. You probably haven’t even opened that document in…”

“Like 2 years?” Harry suggested.

Louis snorted. “Two? Probably more like 8.”

“Let’s not exaggerate. It’s around 2.”

“It’s 8.”

“2!”

“8!”

Harry held up a hand. “Fine, let’s compromise and just say 5-ish.”

“We could say that, but it would be a lie. Either way, babe, it’s been a long time since you’ve worked on that.”

“Exactly!” Harry said. “And when inspiration strikes, you have to jump on it. You can’t ignore it. See? I sound like a writer already.”

Louis just shook his head before blinking slowly. “So you’re telling me you had time to go to the dollar store and buy glasses you don’t need - which, keep in mind, in order to leave the apartment, you had to actually walk  _ right by  _ your suitcase - and continue working on a novel that you haven’t touched in… 5-ish… years, but you couldn’t unpack your suitcase. Because you suddenly were struck with inspiration to write?”

“Well when you say it like that you make it sound like I wasted the day.”

“All this to avoid unpacking a bag.”  

Harry shushed him. “Babe, please? I’m working.”

Louis just stared before walking away.

\---

It only got worse a few days later when Louis came back from his mom’s house.

Harry was sitting on the couch surrounded by paint swatches. On the floor by his feet was a box that looked like it held samples of different styles of countertops.

Louis took a deep breath. “I’m almost afraid to ask this, but what are you doing?”

“I’m looking at paint swatches,” Harry answered simply. “Trying to decide how to decorate our living room.”

“We live in an apartment.”

“I know.”

“That means we can’t paint our walls.”

“I never said I wanted to decorate  _ this  _ living room. But one day when we move out and get a house, we’ll probably have to paint the living room to look how we want it. What do you think?” Harry held up two swatches with nearly identical colors. “Do you like the Gentle Aquamarine or the Nautilus better?”

“You’re mentally decorating a house we don’t even have?” Louis asked as he rubbed his temples with his fingers.

“It’s never too early to start thinking about something like this, Lou. Oh, and I was looking up houses in the area, too. Obviously, your mom would destroy us if we even thought about moving more than a half hour away from her, and my mom would, too, since she and Robin just moved back here less than a year ago.”

“Where did you even get this stuff?”

“Home Depot. And Sherwin-Williams,” Harry answered, “I wanted to make sure I got the right price, of course.”

“So you had time to go to two different stores and get samples of paint colors and countertops, look up affordable housing within a thirty-minute radius of our parents’ houses and compare enough colors to narrow the choice down to two shades that are basically identical—”

“They’re not identical, Louis,” Harry interrupted. “They’re Gentle Aquamarine and Nautilus. You don’t listen when I talk.”

“But this—” he tapped Harry’s still unopened suitcase with his foot, “—is too much for you. You’re just doing this out of spite now. You have to be.”

“Well if you could just pick a color, I could move on.”

“Fine,” Louis said. “The first one.”

“Really?” Harry examined the colors. “I don’t know, I kind of liked Nautilus better.”

“Fine. Pick Nautilus for our imaginary living room. Whatever makes you happy. I love you so much.”

“Aww, I love you, too, babe.”

As Louis walked down the hallway to their bedroom and away from the conversation, he muttered to himself, “Yup, just have to remind myself of that sometimes, you menace.”

\---

Louis got home early a few days later, and as he opened the door to their apartment, he saw Harry quickly dropping the television remote to the coffee table.

Louis looked between Harry and the TV, which was turned off. When he looked back at Harry, he saw his fiancé looking rather fidgety.

“What were you doing?”

“Nothing,” Harry answered immediately.

“What were you watching on TV?”

“What TV?”

“Harry!”

“What?” Harry asked.

And then Louis understood. “Were you watching  _ Nailed It!  _ without me?”

“Of course not!” Harry put a hand to his chest in fake shock. “I would never watch a show without you.”

“Yes, you would.”

“OK, I would, but I didn’t.”

Louis held out a hand. “Give me the remote.”

“Why?”

“So I can see if any new episodes have been watched.”

“They haven’t,” Harry insisted.

“Well I don’t believe you.”

“You know, Louis, a good relationship is built on trust. If we can’t get past this, I don’t know what it’ll mean for our marriage—”

Harry couldn’t finish, because at that point, Louis lunged for the remote.

“No!” Harry yelled.

They grabbed it at the same time, and Louis let go of it only so he could jump on Harry and start tickling him up his sides.

“Stop it!” Harry yelled as he laughed.

“Let go of it!”

“No!”

Since that tactic wasn’t working, Louis tried his other go-to. He quickly pushed up Harry’s shirt enough so he could see his tummy. Then he ducked his head and blew a series of raspberries into it.

Harry’s loud giggles told Louis that he would be able to get the remote now.

“Stop!” Harry tried to say forcefully, but his laughter got in the way.

Louis snatched the remote from his weak grip, turned on the television and pulled up Netflix. When he got there, he was surprised.

“You watched the whole second season!”

“To be fair, there’s only six episodes. But I didn’t watch the  _ Queer Eye  _ crossover yet!”

“Only because I came home.”

“Early, I might add!” Harry said. “Thanks for the warning!”

“Oh for God’s sake, Harry! You can’t really be trying to blame this on me.”

“Of course I can try! Is it working, though?”

“All because I told you you needed to unpack your suitcase? Well you know what? Fuck it. I’ve had it.”

Harry watched as Louis crossed the room to his suitcase and dragged it across the room, stopping right in front of him.

“What are you doing?” Harry asked.

“You need to unpack.”

“I know. I will.”

“No. Today. Now.”

Harry sat up and raised an eyebrow. “What are you gonna do? Make me?”

Louis grinned. “Yup.”

And then, Louis knelt down, unzipped Harry’s suitcase and lifted it up, dumping its contents - shorts, T-shirts, toiletries, swim trunks, sneakers and a few pairs of flip flops - all over Harry.

“Stop!” Harry yelled, covering his face from getting hit. “What are you doing, you crazy person?”

Louis shook the suitcase a few more times, making sure everything was out. Then he tossed it toward the window. It landed with a thud.

“You need to unpack,” Louis repeated.

Harry’s arms were partly covered by his stuff, so he wiggled them out. Then he pulled a tank top off his head.

“You’re a jerk.”

Louis shrugged. “You’re a procrastinator. And you need to unpack.” He leaned forward and pecked Harry on the lips. “I’ll grab your hamper and you can throw the dirty stuff right in.”

“How helpful,” Harry muttered grumpily.

Louis chuckled as he walked down the hallway. He grabbed Harry’s hamper and quietly went back to the living room with it. When he returned, Harry was still surrounded by clothes, but it at least looked like he was sorting everything into piles.

When he saw Louis watching him, he glanced at him for a moment before saying, “Shut up.”

“Never,” Louis said with a smirk. He dropped the hamper next to him. “You probably have laundry to do, so I think I’m gonna go for a run. Maybe you won’t be shooting daggers at me with your eyes when I return.”

“Not likely. I’m calling off the wedding.”

“Yeah, right. I’ve been here for 20 years already. At this point, you’re just kind of stuck with me.”

“How lucky for me,” Harry said.

“Damn right it is,” Louis replied with a wink.

The smile that took over Harry’s face was the only response he needed. 

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed!  
> If you did, maybe consider reblogging the [post](http://flamboyantommo.tumblr.com/post/175721666542) I made?   
> <3
> 
> Hit me up on [twitter](http://twitter.com/angelique_lee) or [tumblr](http://www.flamboyantommo.tumblr.com/) if you feel like it! If you follow me on either, let me know who you are so I definitely follow you back!


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